Sitting surrounded by hundreds of neatly filed pages of sheet music at the computer in his dim office on the fourth floor of Murphy Hall, University of Kansas professor of clarinet Dr. Larry Maxey looks out of place, and he’s the first to admit it.
“I prefer the typewriter… I think it’s the last one on campus,” Dr. Maxey says coyly.
The typewriter sits in a corner by the room’s only window, one that towers almost floor to ceiling. A fitting size as the inhabitant of the office is the approximately the same height.
Other vintage items fill up the space in the room. From an old metal clarinet displayed front and center on the room’s black, upright piano, to past posters on the walls advertising concerts that Dr. Maxey has performed.
All of these will be gone from the room come the end of the semester when, after 37 years at the University, Dr. Maxey will retire from teaching the instrument he loves and what has been his ticket for traveling the world.
“It’s just time to do it. [retire] I’ll miss the students, but it’s just time to move on,” Dr. Maxey said.
Born in northern Indiana, Maxey first started playing clarinet when he was in grade school. However, the idea of playing the instrument was not his.
“The band director looked at our chops and said ‘you should play clarinet,’ ” Dr. Maxey said.
Dr. Maxey went with the director’s recommendation and the instrument stuck with him ever since. After playing through high school, he studied the instrument at Michigan State University where he earned his undergraduate degree. He then was accepted into the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY where he completed his master and doctoral degrees. Maxey was anxious to begin teaching, however Uncle Sam had other plans.
“I was drafted and spent two years in the Army. Originally, they started me off as a clerk typist, so I had to manipulate the system to get into music,” Maxey said.
It was in the service that Maxey first began to travel on account of his musical abilities. He was stationed in Germany and played concerts across Europe with the 7th Army Symphony. It was at one of these concerts where he met his future wife, Linda, also a musician.
“She was the soloist that evening and I was in the backing band,” Maxey said. The two married after Dr. Maxey left the Army and arrived back in the United States. Their two children, Mark and Kim, continued the family’s musical talent.
“My brother and I both played piano, and I chose the clarinet in grade school. My dad was my teacher in sixth grade all the way through high school,” Kim said. Kim chose not to pursue the instrument in college due to one key piece of advice that her dad gave her.
“He said there was no money in it,” Kim said laughing.
Dr. Maxey’s concise manor isn’t just reserved for his personal life. Dr. Margaret Marco, associate professor of oboe, has played alongside Dr. Maxey in a number of musical groups during her eight years at the University. In February, the two played a concert with the Kansas Woodwinds, a sextet comprised of music department faculty members.
“He isn’t as verbose as most of us in the group, but when he contributes a comment, it’s always pithy and pertinent,” Marco said. In addition to playing with this group, Dr. Maxey has toured extensively as a soloist and played duets with Linda on her instrument, the marimba.
“I’ve been to Lithuania twice, Costa Rica three times, Portugal once. Music has always gotten me there,” Dr. Maxey said. However, students have always been Dr. Maxey’s first priority, and this dedication has not gone unnoticed.
“He was a big reason that I came to KU. His help is ongoing and encompasses many different types. Not only clarinet, but also helping me get through this degree that has many requirements,” Mike Walsh, Stony Brook, NY, graduate student said.
Dr. Maxey had the opportunity on multiple occasions to be promoted into administrative positions, but that meant going against his nature of teaching students on a one on one basis.
“I was never enticed by the offers for administration for more then three seconds,” Dr. Maxey said.
As of now, Dr. Maxey’s calendar is wide open after the last day of the semester. However, there is one thing he knows he’ll be doing in the coming years.
“I suppose I’ll be traveling with Linda.” Dr. Maxey said.